CHRIS FROOME CONQUERS ALL IN THE ALPS Team Sky hold off Quintana's challenge to leave Froome in yellow for the Champs Elysees

There's something special about Alpe d'Huez. The spaghetti string of 21 hairpins leads to a nondescript ski resort, perched on a cliff top high in the French Alps and made legendary by the Tour de France. It's not the loftiest mountain peak in the world's most famous bike race – and it's certainly not the prettiest – but it's cycling's Cup Final, complete with rowdy fans, wacky costumes and pounding hangovers. Words: Jeremy Whittle - Photography: GodingImages